Editing Pythagoras (section)

=== Early life ===
{{blockquote|There is not a single detail in the life of Pythagoras that stands uncontradicted. But it is possible, from a more or less critical selection of the data, to construct a plausible account.|[[Walter Burkert]], 1972{{sfnp|Burkert|1972|page=106}}}}

[[Herodotus]]{{sfnp|Hdt. 4|loc=§95|p=297}} and [[Isocrates]] agree that Pythagoras was the son of Mnesarchus,{{sfnp|Joost-Gaugier|2006|page=16}}{{sfnp|Kahn|2001|page=6}} and that he was born on the Greek island of [[Samos]] in the eastern [[Aegean Sea|Aegean]].{{sfnp|Joost-Gaugier|2006|page=11}}{{sfnp|Kahn|2001|page=6}}{{sfnp|Kenny|2004|page=9}} Mnesarchus is said to have been a gem-engraver or a wealthy merchant{{sfnp|Porphyry, Vit. Pyth|loc=§1, §10}}<ref>{{harvp|Strom|loc=1.62(2)}}, cit. {{harvp|Afonasin|2012|p=15}}</ref>{{sfnp|Joost-Gaugier|2006|page=21}} but his ancestry is disputed and unclear.{{efn|name=ancestry}} [[Apollonius of Tyana]] writes that Pythagoras's mother was Pythaïs, who was said to be a descendant of [[Ancaeus (son of Poseidon)|Ancaeus]], the mythical founder of Samos.{{sfnp|Taub|2017|page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=odm7DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA122 122]}}<ref>[[Apollonius of Tyana]] ap. {{harvp|Porphyry, Vit. Pyth|loc=§2}}</ref> [[Iamblichus]] tells the story that the Pythia prophesied to her while she was pregnant with him that she would give birth to a man supremely beautiful, wise, and beneficial to humankind.{{sfnp|Riedweg|2005|page=59}} As to the date of his birth, [[Aristoxenus]] stated that Pythagoras left Samos in the reign of [[Polycrates]], at the age of 40, which would give a date of birth around 570 BC.{{sfnp|Porphyry, Vit. Pyth|loc=§9}} Pythagoras's name led him to be associated with [[Pythia]]n [[Apollo]] ({{transliteration|grc|Pūthíā}}); [[Aristippus of Cyrene]] in the 4th century BC explained his name by saying, "He spoke [{{lang|grc|[[wikt:ἀγορεύω|ἀγορεύω]]}}, {{transliteration|grc|agoreúō}}] the truth no less than did the Pythian [{{lang|grc|[[wikt:Πυθία|πυθικός]]}} {{transliteration|grc|puthikós}}]".{{sfnp|Riedweg|2005|page=59}}

During Pythagoras's formative years, Samos was a thriving cultural hub known for its feats of advanced architectural engineering, including the building of the [[Tunnel of Eupalinos]], and for its riotous festival culture.{{sfnp|Riedweg|2005|pages=45–47}} It was a major center of trade in the Aegean where traders brought goods from the [[Near East]].{{sfnp|Joost-Gaugier|2006|page=11}} According to Christiane L. Joost-Gaugier, these traders almost certainly brought with them Near Eastern ideas and traditions.{{sfnp|Joost-Gaugier|2006|page=11}} Pythagoras's early life also coincided with the flowering of early Ionian [[natural philosophy]].{{sfnp|Kahn|2001|page=6}}{{sfnp|Riedweg|2005|pages=44–45}} He was a contemporary of the philosophers [[Anaximander]], [[Anaximenes of Miletus|Anaximenes]], and the historian [[Hecataeus of Miletus|Hecataeus]], all of whom lived in [[Miletus]], across the sea from Samos.{{sfnp|Riedweg|2005|pages=44–45}}